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LITTLE 

MEN AND WOMEN 
STORIES 



From Story —In Care of the Conductor 






























From Story —Easier Garden 


2 







































































































































LITTLE MEN 
and WOMEN 



STORIES 

By CARPED 5HERWIN BAILEY 

The Taxnous story lady's hip books 
UNCOLN TIME STORIES, SURPRISE 
STORIES 


FULtY ILLUSTRATED 


“ks. JUST RIGHT book!.’ 
ALBERT 'WHITMAN' COMPANY 
PUBLISHERS 
CHICAGO 4 U \5*A_ 








LITTLE MEN AND WOMEN STORIES 
Copyright, 1924, hy Albert Whitman d Co., 
Chicago , U. S. A. 


“JUST RIGHT” BOOKS 
BY 

CAROLYN SHERWIN 
BAILEY 

Little Men and Women Stories 
Surprise Stories 
Reading Time Stories 
All Year Play Games 
In and Out-of-Door Play 
Games 

EACH SIXTY CENTS 
An Extraordinary Collection 

Stories from an Indian Cave 
RETAIL PRICE $1.25 


ALBERT WHITMAN dfc COM¬ 
PANY 

PUBLISHERS 




> 





A JUST RIGHT BOOK, 


PUBLISHED IN THE U. S. A. 


SEP-6 1924 ' 

©CI A8017 4 




4 
























































THE CONTENTS 


When Dobbin Ran Away 

PAGE 

- - - 7 

The Skipper of the Molly L. - 

- - - 16 

Father Mole’s New House 

- - - 27 

In the City of Play - - - 

- - - 36 

In Care of the Conductor 

- - - 47 

By Air Mail .... 

- - - 56 

Easter in the Garden 

- - - 65 

When Company Came 

- - - 74 

The Cat Who Talked - - 

- - - 83 

The Magic Bird - 

- - - 92 

The Picture Angel - 

- - - 101 

5 




Molly’s strong , firm little hand on his bridle 


6 




























































LITTLE MEN AND WOMEN 
STORIES 



WHEN DOBBIN RAN AWAY 
Molly had a secret. It was a secret 
which she had to keep locked up in 
her heart. Molly was afraid of horses. 











8 


Little Men and Women Stories 


She was more afraid of even a slow 
old horse than she wanted anyone to 
know. When the big dray horses had 
waited so quietly in front of the cellar 
door last week as the winter’s supply 
of coal was unloa4ed, Molly had 
stayed at the front of the house, not 
going toward the back once. 

So, fancy how Molly felt when 
mother said to her one morning when 
the kitchen was full of the spicy smell 
of the fall canning and preserving, 

“I need another basket of tomatoes 
and some green peppers and some 
very small pickling cucumbers, Molly. 
Like a good child, go to the corner 




When Dobbin Ran Away 


9 


and stop Tony, the vegetable man, 
when he comes along with his horse 
and wagon. Tell him to drive down 
this way.” 

Molly did as mother asked her to. 
She went down the lane in front of 
their house and as far as the corner 
where Elm street and Washington 
street came together. All the way 
she could smell the sweet odors of the 
canning and preserving in other 
kitchens. And when she reached the 
corner she could see Tony’s vegetable 
wagon standing outside of a house at 
the end of the block. How interesting 
and bright it was, full to the very sides 




10 Little Men and Women Stories 


with round, rosy tomatoes, green cu¬ 
cumbers, small russet pears, dark red 
and green cabbages and crimson 
apples. 

But Tony, the vegetable man, was 
not in sight He must be in some 
back yard, Molly thought, weighing 
out potatoes or beets. And suddenly 
Tony’s white horse, Dobbin, who drew 
the vegetable wagon, began to walk 
all by himself! Dobbin walked so 
fast that it was almost a trot straight 
toward Molly. It was frightful, and 
the worst of it was that Dobbin was 
headed toward Elm street, the street 
of the town that had automobiles and 



When Dobbin Ran Away 


11 


swiftly moving trucks and trolley 
cars, because it was so wide. Dobbin 
would run away when he reached Elm 
street, Molly knew. 

Molly thought of a great many 
things in the short space of time it took 
the vegetable w'agon and Dobbin to 
reach her. She thought how cold her 
hands felt and how her teeth chattered. 
She thought, too, of all the ginger pear 
and the spiced tomatoes and the sweet 
pickle that would be spoiled if Dobbin 
ran away so far and fast that he tipped 
over the wagon. And Molly thought 
how many times Dobbin had brought 
good things to eat right to their back 




12 


Little Men and Women Stories 


fence, in all kinds of weather, patiently. 

Suddenly Molly decided to forget 
her fears. She stepped to the edge of 
the street down which Dobbin came, 
and she took a firm hold of his bridle. 

Nothing dreadful at all happened. 
Dobbin did not throw his heels in the 
air or do anything that a runaway 
horse is supposed to do. Instead, it 
seemed to be a comfort to him to feel 
Molly’s strong, firm little hand on his 
bridle. He stood still, looking down 
at her with kind eyes. 

And something strange happened 
to Molly also. With her hold on the 
horse she lost her fear. She felt as 




When Dobbin Ran Away 


13 


brave as a fireman, or a circus rider, 
or the man on the motorcycle who be¬ 
longed to the Society for the Preven¬ 
tion of Cruelty to animals. “Come on, 
Dobbin,” Molly said, leading him with 
the loaded vegetable wagon down 
their lane. “Come right along with 
me. Mother is waiting for some to¬ 
matoes and pickles.” 

Dobbin followed, slowly and care¬ 
fully, with his head close to the little 
girl’s shoulder. Once he stopped and 
put his nose down in the pocket of 
her apron. Molly laughed gaily. 
Why, Dobbin was just like an over¬ 
grown baby. He had smelled the fat 




14 Little Men and Women Stories 


lump of brown sugar that mother had 
given Molly from the sugar crock. 
Molly fed it to the horse and they 
went on again until they came to the 
gate of Molly’s back fence. 

There was mother, waiting to fill 
her vegetable basket, and so surprised 
to see who had brought the wagon, 
one little girl and one gentle old horse. 
Then Tony came, all breathless, for 
he had thought that Dobbin had ran 
away and upset the vegetables in front 
of the trolley cars on Elm street. 

“Oh, no, Tony,” Molly said. “I am 
not in the least afraid of horses. I 
saved Dobbin.” 




When Dobbin Ran Away 


15 


And how thankful Molly was, as 
Tony gave her his largest, rosiest ap¬ 
ple, that she had kept the secret of 
her fear locked up tightly in her own 
little heart! 





16 Little Men and Women Stories 


THE SKIPPER OF THE MOLLY L. 


When Edward reached the dock 
that he had built of stones on the bank 
of the brook there was no toy sail boat 
there. The Molly L. was gone. Ed¬ 
ward sat down on a log to think it 
over. If he had not been a plucky 
seven-year-old boy he would have 
cried. 

“She was the finest little boat a boy 
ever had,” he said to himself. “Old 




The Skipper of the Molly L 


17 








* W"' 


siP^ 


Edward sat down on a log to think it over 




















18 Little Men and Women Stories 


Captain Newton down in the village 
made her for me, with a deck and a 
hold and wide sails, and painted in 
stripes with her name on one side, 
The Molly L., after his last fishing boat. 
Now she has gone.” 

Edward stood up at last and looked 
at the broken string which had held 
the Molly L. to the dock. It was a wet 
spring; there had been a heavy rain 
the night before and the brook was 
high and rough. The water pouring 
down from a spring up in the woods 
had swept away part of the dock as 
well as tearing the toy ship loose. The 
brook went on, winding in and out of 



The Skipper of the Molly L. 19 
the village, a long way. Although the 
little boy followed the bank as far as 
he could where his father’s land lay, 
he could find no trace of her. 

“I was going to load the Molly L. 
today,” he thought sadly. “I had 
some black pebbles for coal, a lot of 
little boards cut from shingles and 
some empty spools for barrels of oil. 
She was going to make the trip to that 
play city I built below the dock. I 
had made a big warehouse of blocks 
and a mill. Now the fun is all spoiled. 
I wish I had a boy to play with. Some 
girl has moved into the old house on 
the place next to ours and girls don’t 
know how to play anyway.” 


20 Little Men and Women Stories 


So Edward felt unhappy all day, al¬ 
though in the afternoon the sun came 
out and the water of the brook 
sparkled like a real little river. But 
Edward didn’t go down to the brook 
for several days. It was Saturday be¬ 
fore he went. 

He went to bring home the carpen¬ 
ter’s blocks with which he had built 
his little city, for using in his sand pile, 
but he found a surprse. A tall pine 
tree grew beside the brook. Pinned to 
the pine tree was a note. Edward took 
it and read the words that were printed 
on it in pencil: 



The Skipper of the Molly L. 


21 


“May be back tomorrow, 
“Molly L.” 

That was odd. It seemed to be a 
message from a toy ship that had no 
skipper. And there was not a trace 
of the Molly L. at the little stone dock, 
although Edward looked with sharp 
eyes up and down the brook. He went 
home and dreamed about the wonder. 
He was down at the brook the first 
thing Monday morning. 

But still the toy ship was not there. 
Pinned to the tree was another note, 
stranger than the first one: 



22 Little Men and Women Stories 


“I can’t dock today, for I am 
having a new suit made. 

“The Skipper.” 

Odder and odder! Edward felt as 
if he were the hero of a nice adventure 
story. He went to the brook as soon 
as he could the next day and the next, 
but not until Saturday did anything 
happen. But on Saturday morning 
there was the Molly L. tied to the little 
stone dock with a fresh length of 
twine. She carried a load. Seated on 
her deck was the skipper. 

He was a funny black rubber doll, 
but he had been newly dressed, very 




The Skipper of the Molly L. 


23 


neatly, for his position. Beside the 
skipper of the Molly L. was his cargo. 
Such a welcome cargo as the skipper 
of the Molly L. had brought and was 
guarding for his owner. It was a small 
tin barrel of gingersnaps! 

“Oh, Molly L.,” Edward shouted, for 
he always talked to his ship as if she 
were alive. 

“Here I am! ” said a voice that Ed¬ 
ward thought at first must come from 
the skipper. But just then a little girl 
of Edward’s own age, seven, stepped 
out from behind the pine tree. She 
looked like a nice girl to play with, in 




24 Little Men and Women Stories 


a frock that would not tear, with bright 
eyes and a smiling mouth. 

“My name is Molly Lewis,” she told 
Edward. “Your toy ship drifted down 
to our place when the brook rose so 
high and father caught it just in time 
to save it from being wrecked. I knew 
it was your ship, for I have watched 
you playing ever since we moved to 
the place next yours and so I knew I 
must give it back to you. But, first, 
I had a cold and father carried the first 
note and pinned it to your tree so you 
wouldn’t be worried. Then mother 
and I dressed my rubber doll to be the 
skipper. He can swim very well and 




The Skipper of the Molly L 


25 



Stepped out from behind the pine tree 



























26 Little Men and Women Stories 


he never did agree with the other dolls. 
And grandmother baked you the gin- 
gersnaps.” 

“Thank you.” That was all Edward 
could say at first. Then, “I was sure 
you wouldn’t know how to play with 
me,” he finished honestly. 

“Oh, but I do!” said Molly L. the 
girl. 

“You shall unload the cargo,” Ed¬ 
ward said. “Then we will eat it, and 
after that we will own the ship on 
shares.” 




Father Mole’s New House 


27 



The hoys saw him 


FATHER MOLE’S NEW HOUSE 

Father Mole took his slow way 
across the green grass beside the path. 

Watching very quietly, the boys 
saw him, although Father Mole did not 
know that. He had gathered a little 





28 Little Men and Women Stories 


dried moss that he was pushing along 
in front of him with his funny pointed 
nose and his long, flat fore paws. The 
moss was for making beds in the house 
that Father Mole had just finished in 
the deep earth of the lawn. He, him¬ 
self, looked very fine in a new gray 
velvet coat. He wore no gloves for 
this occasion of moving into a new 
house, for he needed his paws for dig¬ 
ging. But Father Mole was going to 
have a long summer’s rest now while 
Mother Mole did the housekeeping. 

How he had worked to build his new 
house! Father Mole was an architect, 
a mason, a road builder, a plumber 



Father Mole’s New House 


29 


and an engineer all in one, with no 
tools except his shovel-like paws and 
his wriggling little nose. 

He had raised first a mound-like 
roof that could be seen only as a small 
bump in the grass. It was the roof of 
a cozy, round room like a gallery, and 
under this and connecting with it was 
another room. Mother Mole was go¬ 
ing to live in a large house. Father 
Mole had put in a water system, too. 
He had dug several wells near the 
lower room so set that they would 
catch the dew and the summer rains. 

And there was the danger of rob¬ 
bers ! But the little house in the earth 



30 


Little Men and Women Stories 


was protected from them. Father 
Mole had dug a long underground 
road along which he and his family 
could make their escape if anyone 
stepped on it or a beetle came down or 
it was flooded. And he had also dug 
five subways that went out in different 
directions from his cellar and each had 
an entrance right there at the cellar. 
His family would be able to take the 
subway whenever they wanted to 
without buying a ticket. 

It had taken a long time, planning 
and measuring and digging all by him¬ 
self, for the little gray man to build 
this house. He had worked without 



Father Mole’s New House 


31 


rest, burrowing with his nose and 
throwing up the earth with the strong 
flat nails of his front paws for three 
hours at a time. Then he had rested 
for three hours, just as if he wore a 
watch and could tell the time, but al¬ 
ways listening. A beetle wearing 
armor might burrow down in the earth, 
or a fat earth worm dig down to try 
and live in the room he was building 
for Mother Mole’s sitting room. 

Now, though, it was all finished. 
Father Mole hurried as he learned by 
the feeling of the ground there beside 
the path that he was close to his front 
door. What did it matter if it was 




32 Little Men and Women Stories 


only a dark, tunneled kind of place? 
It was a moles’ house and as well built 
as those of the rest of the family as far 
back as his many times great grand¬ 
father. 

He had come to the door. But where 
was the house that Father Mole had 
built? He nosed about for it in the 
grass and then he burrowed down un¬ 
derneath. It had been ruined. When 
the children came by that way they 
had kicked it there in the grass and 
stones had gone down inside it. The 
two floors, the wells, the road away 
from robbers and the subways were 
gone. 




Father Mole’s New House 


33 


Did Father Mole feel discouraged 
and give up his plan of having a new 
house? No indeed! None of Mother 
Nature’s boys give up as easily as that. 
He knew what a patient, faithful little 
creature Mother Mole was. She would 
wait for him all summer to finish an¬ 
other house. 

So Father Mole once more measured 
and dug. He raised a new roof, dug 
two more floors, made another secret 
road and five more subways. It took 
him a long time, working three hours 
without stopping and then resting for 
three hours as he watched for tramps. 




34 


Little Men and Women Stories 


If a beetle, an earthworm, or a child 
had spoiled his second house, Father 
Mole would have begun on a third one. 

So the house was finished at last, as 
fine and wonderful as it had been be¬ 
fore it was stepped on, and Father 
Mole went to get Mother Mole. He 
walked slowly, feeling his way at every 
step, but happy and contented. Why 
did he feel his way? 

Father Mole is blind. So were his 
father and his grandfather and his 
many times great grandfathers. 
Mother Mole is blind. But they work 
with such patience and skill that they 
are among the wonders Mother Na- 




Father Mole’s New House 


35 



Mother Nature wjll show any child 

ture will show any child who loves a 
garden and likes to watch what is go¬ 
ing on there. Spiders, ants, moles, 
birds—they know so much that we 
have to be taught to do with our hands. 






36 


Little Men and Women Stories 


IN THE CITY OF PLAY 


There was a high white wall all 
around the City of Play and the gate 
was locked so that the children on the 
outside could not go inside. They 
had peeped through the key hole, 
though, and, oh, the wonders that they 
saw! 

The dolls who lived in the City all 
had curling hair and eyes that opened 
and closed. Toy soldiers in smart red 




In the City of Play 


37 



There was a< city of toy wild animals 



























38 


Little Men and Women Stories 


and gold uniforms and hats with 
plumes marched up and down the 
streets, which were shaded by Christ¬ 
mas trees. Within the City of Play 
there was a zoo of toy wild animals 
that could prowl and roar; bears, lions, 
tigers, and monkeys. There were toy 
farms with barns and tools and woolly 
lambs and mooing cows. 

Along all the lanes of the City were 
picnic tables spread with jam sand¬ 
wiches and plates of taffy and piles of 
candy sticks. But almost the best part 
of the place was the heaps of building 
blocks and the piles of white sand and 
the banks of moulding clay of so many 




In the City of Play 


39 


bright colors. There was no kind of 
happy play a child might not enjoy 
in this magical City. 

“How many boys and girls there are 
inside the City of Play! ” the children 
on the outside said longingly. “Why 
shouldn’t we be inside too? There are 
toys enough for all, why not for us as 
well as the others?” 

“I am going into the City!” Peter 
decided. 

Peter’s father had a fine large farm 
just outside of the City of Play and 
there was a great deal that a strong 
boy eight years old, as Peter was, could 
do to help. He could gather apples 




40 Little Men and Women Stories 


and weed the garden and go for the 
cows, but, no, Peter must wait at the 
wall of the City, wishing to have the 
toys for his own. 

“How will you get in?” asked the 
children. 

“I shall break down the gate. Come 
and watch me! ” said Peter. 

So all the children watched. Peter 
pounded on the gate. He kicked it. 
He shouted in a gruff, surly voice, “Let 
me in, I say. I am coming in to play 
as much as I like.” 

Suddenly the gate opened softly, all 
of itself, and Peter went in. 

“Here I am, come and play with me,” 




In the City of Play 


41 


Peter shouted to the children of the 
City, but none seemed to hear him. 
No one turned or answered him. Each 
boy or girl there was busy playing at 
farming or building or keeping house. 
They only waited for boisterous Peter 
to pass by. 

“Well, I shall play by myself, and 
with whatever toys I chose,” Peter said 
as he plunged into the toy zoo. 

But stranger things happened 
there. The toy lion that he snatched 
crumpled up into paper in his hands. 
A toy soldier who had walked toward 
Peter was not able to stand up alone 
when the little boy touched him. 




42 Little Men and Women Stories 


“I will have a bunch of Christmas 
trees,” Peter decided, not discouraged. 
“I will carry them home all lighted.” 

With that Peter tore up several of 
the beautiful little green trees by their 
roots, but when he reached the gate of 
the City of Play, the candles had gone 
out. The trees were old and black. 

“What is the reason that I can’t have 
a good time here?” Peter asked then of 
another boy who was watching him. 

The boy smiled. “You came in by 
the wrong gate,” he told Peter. “Go 
out again and follow the path you will 
find until you come to the other gate.” 

Peter did as the boy told him and 



In the City of Play 


43 



The candles had gone out. The trees were old and black 













44 Little Men and Women Stories 


he was surprised to find a path he 
had never noticed before. All kinds 
of weeds and stones and dusty things 
had to be taken out of it before he 
could walk along it at all. Then it 
suddenly led to his own orchard where 
there were many apples to be picked 
up and put in barrels. After that it 
was just the old farm path down to 
the cow pasture. 

“This must be a mistake,” Peter 
thought as he gathered apples and 
then started the bell cow leading the 
others home, but, oh, what a surprise 
came to him! The path ended in a 
gate. It looked for all the world like 




45 


In the Citv of Plav 

* J 





































46 Little Men and Women Stories 


the one he had kicked before, but now 
it opened without his touching it. In¬ 
side, the City with all its treasures lay 
before him. 

But this time the children of the City 
held out their hands to him. The toys 
marched, and roared, and banged, and 
whistled a welcome to Peter. 

Peter raised his hands as he stood in 
the City square and called to the boys 
and girls on the outside. 

“Come in!” he shouted. “I have 
found the way. Do your work first, 
and play afterward. That’s the way 
into this City.” 




In Care of the Conductor 


47 



She had real hair and eyes 


IN CARE OF THE CONDUCTOR 

Eunice dreaded very much the trip 
on the train to visit Great-aunt Eunice. 

It was going to be beautiful after she 
reached Feeding Hills where Great- 
aunt Eunice lived, the big white house 




48 Little Men and Women Stories 


with its garden and orchard and swing 
and a full cooky jar and, oh, so many 
other nice things that the little girl 
could not count them. The trouble, 
though, was the going there. 

Mother was ill. Father was away. 
If Eunice went to Feeding Hills for a 
long, pleasant visit she must go alone, 
in the care of the conductor. And 
Eunice was afraid of conductors and 
noisy, whirling-along trains. 

She knew that she must not tell any¬ 
one of her fear. Her small trunk was 
packed with plenty of gingham play 
frocks and a white dress for best and 
her own little sewing basket and a 



In Care of the Conductor 


49 


book for Great-aunt Eunice. The 
hired girl took Eunice down to the 
noisy, busy station, bought her ticket, 
and before she hardly knew it, there 
she was climbing up the steps of the 
train and the conductor in his blue suit 
with shiny gold buttons was saying to 
the hired girl: 

“All right. Feeding Hills station. 
Yes, I’ll see that the little girl gets off 
there safely.” 

All alone, with her heart going pit¬ 
a-pat, Eunice followed the conductor 
down the aisle of the long car and 
sat down in the seat to which he led 
her. The hired girl left the station 




50 Little Men and Women Stories 


almost at once, for she had work to 
do at home. But even if she had been 
there at the station, Eunice would not 
have been able to see her. Her only 
friend, the strange conductor, had left 
her almost at once and Eunice could 
not see out of the window, because her 
eyes were full of homesick tears. The 
train started. Oh, it was a very sad 
trip! Eunice snuggled down as far 
as she could in the seat, so that no one 
would see that she was crying. 

“Mama! ” Why, what was that? 

No wonder the doll who was occu¬ 
pying the other half of Eunice’s seat 
had spoken. She, too, was all alone 




In Care of the Conductor 


51 


and Eunice had not seen her. Eunice 
had only leaned on her so hard that 
she had made her cry. Eunice driecf 
her eyes an looked in happy wonder 
at the doll. She was dressed as Eunice 
was, in her traveling things. She, too, 
seemed to be going somewhere alone 
in the care of the conductor. At least 
there was no other little girl the entire 
length of the car to whom she might 
belong. But the doll had the happiest 
face Eunice had almost ever seen. She 
wasn’t afraid of a thing, no, indeed. 

The doll could talk; that Eunice had 
proved. You had only to press her on 
her pretty ribbon sash and she said, 




52 Little Men and Women Stories 


“Mama,” as nicely as you please. She 
had real hair and her eyes would open 
and close. Eunice could not resist 
taking the all-alone doll in her arms 
and rocking her to and fro in time to 
the motion of the swiftly moving train. 
The doll closed her eyes and was 
asleep in no time. She did not even 
awaken when Eunice was startled by 
a voice at her elbow, 

“Tickets, please.” There was the 
conductor, right beside them. 

Eunice found her ticket in her red 
purse and the conductor punched it. 
Then he looked down through his 
spectacles at the doll. He even 




In Care of the Conductor 


53 


frowned. “How old is your daugh¬ 
ter?” asked the conductor. “She looks 
old enough to pay half fare.” 

Eunice did not know what to think, 
what to say. The doll was not a baby. 
Anyone could tell that, for she wore 
short clothes. But Eunice could not 
tell how old she was, and she certainly 
had no ticket for her. But the con¬ 
ductor seemed to understand. All at 
once his frown softened into smile 
wrinkles. He laughed and patted 
Eunice on her head. 

“I guess we’ll let her travel on a 
pass,” he said. “And how would you 
like to take her to Feeding Hills with 




54 


Little Men and Women Stories 


you? You see, a little girl about your 
age was traveling from Boston with 
two or three dolls and her mother and 
a lot of luggage. A few stations back 
they all got off and the little girl for¬ 
got one of her dolls. I just telephoned 
back about it, but they had left word 
at the station that it didn’t matter 
about the doll.” 

“Well, I guess it does matter about 
her!” Eunice found herself talking 
without any trouble to the kind con¬ 
ductor who knew how to joke. “I 
guess I can adopt her and bring her 
up as my own.” 




In Care of the Conductor 


55 


“Right! ” said the conductor. “That 
is why I put you in her seat.” 

“Feeding Hills! ” The door opened 
and the brakeman poked his head in 
to call out the station. The conductor 
helped Eunice and her new daughter 
out. There, waiting for them, was 
Great-aunt Eunice in her automobile. 
How delightful a trip it had been, and 
how nice to travel in care of the con¬ 
ductor ! 




56 Little Men and Women Stories 


BY AIR MAIL 


Although her wings were tired, 
Pink-Toes, the pigeon, kept right on 
flying. She had been on her way for 
several days now with many obstacles 
as she went, but she was not going to 
let anything stop her. 

“Rest a while with me and look 
down on all the sights of the town,” a 
gilt weathercock high on a steeple 




57 


Bv Air Mail 

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VAV 


Imlllii'r '- 


‘WK'XOTI 


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So Pink-Toes flew cm 
























































58 Little Men and Women Stories 


had creaked to Pink-Toes one windy 
day. But the pigeon had only called 
back in her soft voice as she hurried 
by the weathercock, “Coo-roo, coo- 
roo. You would never do.” The 
weathercock looked too hard and 
bright to be a friend to a lost pigeon. 

So Pink-Toes flew on, although she 
was not quite sure where she was go¬ 
ing, and she met a very large kite with 
a long tail of colored paper streaming 
behind it up there in the sky. 

“Fly along with me,” said the kite, 
for it had a mouth painted on its paper 
face, “and we will never go near a 
child again. I am flying away from 




By Air Mail 


59 


one. See him standing like a small 
dot on that hill!” 

But Pink-Toes stretched her wings 
and left the kite, for she did not like 
the appearance of the kite’s long tail. 
It might get tangled in her feathers, 
thought Pink-Toes, and then she 
would have to go just where the wild 
kite pleased. “Coo-roo, coo-roo. I 
don’t like you,” called back the pigeon 
as she flew faster. Somewhere, she 
hoped, she would find a home before 
long. 

And presently she came, tired and 
hungry, to a town with many roofs and 
she stopped to rest on a red chimney. 




60 Little Men and Women Stories 


Then an old black bat, awakened by 
the flapping of Pink-Toes wings, came 
out of the chimney and spoke to her 
in a squeeking voice like the voice of 
a mouse. 

“Live here with me in this chimney,” 
urged the bat. “It is full of thick, 
warm soot and one can sleep all day 
and fly at night among the stars.” As 
he spoke, the bat came closer to Pink- 
Toes and scattered soot on her white 
feathers. Dear me, all her family had 
been clean, she thought. She hurried 
to the edge of the roof and started off 
again on her tired wings, only stop¬ 
ping to tell the black bat what she 



By Air Mail 


61 


thought of him. “Coo-roo, coo-roo, if 
I were you I’d take a bath, that’s what 
I’d do! ” But the bat paid no atten¬ 
tion and only went to sleep in his chim¬ 
ney again. 

And it seemed to Pink-Toes that she 
could not fly any farther, but she kept 
on. After a while, she seemed to know 
where she was. There was an apple 
orchard and beyond it a barn with a 
dove cote on the roof. She could see 
a garden with a rose vine and hear the 
voices of children. On flew tired Pink- 
Toes until she dropped right there in 
the garden as if that had been the place 
for which she had started. 




62 Little Men and Women Stories 


“A pigeon, a carrier pigeon with a 
letter under her wing! It is just as if 
we had a letter here in our new home 
by air mail. How wonderful! ” Pink- 
Toes heard the children cry as they 
took her carefully in their arms and 
untied the letter she was carrying. 

“I was sorry to leave the farm, but 
here is one of my pigeons come back 
to welcome you,” the children were 
reading Pink-Toes’ letter. “She was 
not happy here in a cage in the city 
so I am sending her home to you. She 
will not stop until she reaches you. 

“Your friend, 

“Bobby.” 





“How wonderful!” Pink-Toes heard the children cry 

63 































64 Little Men and Women Stories 


Yes, now Pink-Toes remembered 
why she had flown so far and not 
stopped with the weathercock, the kite 
or the bat. She was a carrier pigeon, 
sent to welcome some strange children 
come to live in her old home. The boy 
who had left the farm had given her 
back. There would be corn now and 
a place in her old dove cote to doze in 
the sun. Pink-Toes was glad that she 
had kept on flying. 




Easter in the Garden 


65 


EASTER IN THE GARDEN 


The Garden was all ready for 
Easter. Each flower there had been 
given a new dress or a pretty new hat. 

The Lily wore white with ruffles 
around the edge of her skirt. The 
Tulip children had gay green dresses 
and bonnets of many different colors, 
red, and pink, and gold. There were 
the Daisies that lived in the Garden, 
and they had been given wide hats 




66 Little Men and Women Stories 


with white brims and yellow crowns. 
Even the young Crocuses who lived in 
the grass of the lawn wore bright 
Easter caps, purple, and orange, and 
white with stripes. 

The sky was blue and the sun shin¬ 
ing and the Garden should have been 
very happy indeed on Easter morning, 
but it was not. It had heard the voices 
of the Children on the eve before. 

“Tomorrow you shall be picked!” 
the Children had said, as if the flowers 
would be pleased to know that. But 
the Garden did not want to lose its 
flowers. The flowers themselves did 
not want to be picked. 



Easter in the Garden 


67 


“The Lily says that no Child knows 
how to hold her long, slim stem,” 
buzzed an early Bumble Bee who had 
been feasting inside her cup of sweets. 
“She says that Children break the 
stems of flowers.” 

“The Tulip says that a Child would 
crush her bonnet in its large, fat hand,” 
chirped a song sparrow who had just 
arrived in the tulip bed. “All the 
Tulips have been given beautiful new 
bonnets this spring and they want to 
keep them looking fresh for Easter.” 

“The Daisies are full of dew drop 
tears,” croaked the Garden Toad, who 
had lived so many years under the 




68 Little Men and Women Stories 


stone beside the path that he was very 
wise. “And I know why they are cry¬ 
ing. Children always pull the Daisies’ 
white hat rims off to see if someone 
loves them. They ought to know that 
everybody loves a good child. The 
Daisies are right in not wishing to 
have their hats taken off.” 

So the morning that should have 
been the happiest one of the whole 
year for a Garden that has come up 
in all its colors through the brown 
earth, was sad. And shortly after 
breakfast out came the Children with 
the gardening shears. Yes, they were 
picking the flowers. 




Easter in the Garden 


69 





70 Little Men and Women Stories 


“Of what use are my Easter ruffles! ” 
breathed the Lily as the oldest Child 
held her by her long green stalk. 
“Why did I wear them today?” 

“Now I shall be pulled to pieces 
while this Boy counts my petals,” 
sighed each Easter Daisy. 

And the Tulips, held in a bunch in 
the warm hand of the youngest Child, 
nodded their bonnets sadly. “We 
might just as well have stayed under¬ 
ground,” they thought. “Where are 
we going, and who will see our new 
garments?” 

And the flowers held in the Chil¬ 
dren’s hands left the garden and went 




Easter in the Garden 


71 


down the lane. But there was a Robin 
in the apple tree in the lane who sang 
to them. 

“Cheer-up, cheer-up! ” sang the 
Robin on Easter morning. 

And there was a great bell at the end 
of the lane. It hung high in its steeple 
and as soon as it saw the flowers it be¬ 
gan to sing too. 

“Ding-a-ling. Bells shall ring, 

Children in their arms shall bring 

Flowers, promise of the spring.” 

That was the message of the church 
bell that welcomed the Children, and 




72 Little Men and Women Stories 


as they went up the steps of the church 
the flowers were suddenly glad that 
they had been picked. The church 
was full of other Children waiting for 
them. There must be flowers on Easter 
Day, picked flowers, to tell that beauty 
will come from the deep darkness of 
the earth. And the Children had car¬ 
ried them so carefully. The Lily, the 
Tulips and the Daisies were now as 
happy as if they had enjoyed their new 
dresses only in the Garden. 





The children carried them carefully 










74 Little Men and Women Stories 


WHEN COMPANY CAME 



“Oh, dear,” sighed Mother-Dear,” 
how I do hope that I shall not have 
company today. I love visitors, but 
there is so much to do on Saturday.” 
And Mother-Dear went upstairs to 
make the beds with fresh and snowy 
linen. 

Janet and Sister were planning to 
have a whole long Saturday of play, 
but they watched Mother-Dear as she 




When Company Came 


75 









76 Little Men and Women Stories 


hurried up the stairs. Then Janet 
whispered to Sister. It was a secret 
that she whispered, but when Mother- 
Dear came downstairs again and went 
to the kitchen to begin the Saturday 
baking, she found that something had 
happened there. Some of her work 
was done. The vegetables were 
washed, the peas shelled, and the car¬ 
rots cut up in little orange cubes. The 
raisins were seeded. The breakfast 
dishes were washed and shining, but 
there was no one in the kitchen. 

When the raisin pie was baked and 
standing in all its crusty best on the 
pantry shelf, Mother-Dear hurried into 



When Company Came 


77 


the living room with her brush and 
duster to make it spotless for Sunday. 
But when she came to the living room 
she found that something had hap¬ 
pened there as well. 

There was not a speck of dust any¬ 
where. The furniture was bright in its 
polish. The goldfish jar was shining. 
There were daisies in the bowl on the 
large table and pansies in the bowl on 
the small table. All the books and 
magazines lay in neat piles. And this 
was strange, for there was no one in 
the living room. 

But there was still plenty of Satur¬ 
day work to be done. Mother-Dear 




78 Little Men and Women Stories 


knew that very well. She went up to 
the sewing room. Miss Needles-and- 
Pins, the seamstress, had been there all 
the week cutting out and stitching up 
gay play dresses of gingham and 
linen for Janet and Sister. And Miss 
Needles-and-Pins never picked up her 
pins or her pieces of cloth. All day 
long she sewed and snipped fast, but 
she left the sewing room for Mother- 
Dear to put in order again. 

But a most surprising thing had 
happened in the sewing room. 
Mother-Dear had nothing to do, for it 
was in order. The pins and needles 
stood like soldiers in their pin cushion. 




When Company Came 


79 


The pieces of gingham and linen were 
rolled up, ready to be made into doll’s 
clothes. All the spools of thread were 
neatly wound and set in rows in the 
drawer of the sewing machine. 

Mother-Dear was very, very much 
puzzled. “It looks as if there had been 
company in our house,” she said to 
herself, “very helpful visitors,” but she 
could not see anyone, although she 
looked in all the rooms. 

Just before supper time, Mother- 
Dear heard a rustling in the living 
room and she went in to see what it 
was. There, sitting very primly, side 
by side, on the couch were two strange 




80 Little Men and Women Stories 


ladies. They were very stylishly 
dressed, one in a wide hat with a 
feather like Mother-Dear’s last year 
hat, and the other in an evening cape 
with a fur collar, like Aunt Molly’s old 
cape. 

Mother-Dear had never seen the 
two ladies before, but she knew at once 
who they must be. They were the 
strange company which had been 
helping her with the Saturday work, 
and doing it so quietly that she had 
not seen them. Their calling clothes 
looked a little like the things that hung 
in the attic, but of course Mother-Dear 
could not be sure of this. 





They were very stylishly dressed 


81 



















































82 


Little Men and Women Stories 


“I am so glad to see you,” Mother- 
Dear told the two ladies. “I never 
knew before how welcome company 
could be on Saturday. I hope you will 
call again!” She shook hands with 
the two as they went out of the room, 
their trains sweeping behind them. 

Wouldn’t Mother-Dear have been 
surprised if she had known that the 
two ladies were Janet and Sister, who 
had never been such a help on Satur¬ 
day before! 




When Company Came 


83 


THE CAT WHO TALKED 



“Tabby is the only one in the house 
who knows and she won’t tell,” Sister 
said to Jimmy-Boy as they washed the 
candy kettle very clean and polished 
the big preserving spoon. 

“And the molasses pop-corn is all 
eaten and the plate is perfectly empty 
and washed,” added Jimmy-Boy as if 
to make his own little heart feel at 
rest. But Sister’s heart would not keep 




84 Little Men and Women Stories 


still. Pat, pat, pat, it went. “Mother 
trusted you and Jimmy-Boy and you 
have not kept her trust.” That was 
what Sister’s heart was saying, and 
Jimmy-Boy’s was beating to the same 
tune. 

“Thump, thump, thump; a boy 
ought to keep his word and you have 
not.” That was what Jimmy-Boy’s 
heart said. 

The two were not feeling as cheerful 
as a little boy and girl who have just 
popped a whole popper full of corn 
and then made molasses balls of it and 
eaten them ought to feel. Mother had 
gone to see Aunt Edith, who had such 














As they washed the candy kettle clean 



85 













































































































































86 Little Men and Women Stories 


a cold that she had to stay in bed. 
And Mother had said to Sister and 
Jimmy-Boy just before she left, “Sister 
will straighten out the playroom for 
me, I know, and Jimmy-Boy will fill 
the fireplace wood basket. Then you 
can have a good time playing until I 
come home. Tabby will keep you 
company.” 

Tabby was Aunt Edith’s cat, older 
than Sister, and she was staying at 
their house because Aunt Edith was ill. 
Tabby had to have her milk warmed 
for her. She was sleek and white and 
sleepy as the children made the mo¬ 
lasses balls. She certainly did not 




The Cat Who Talked 


87 


look as if she would ever tell what had 
been going on in Mother’s absence. 

Still Sister and Jimmy-Boy were not 
feeling happy. While Mother had not 
actually forbidden them to make mo¬ 
lasses pop-corn, they knew that she 
would not have liked to know that they 
were down in the kitchen fussing with 
the drafts of the stove and cooking. 
She had not mentioned pop-corn and 
the molasses jug in the things they 
were not to touch, for she had never 
thought of them. That made it all the 
worse. As the sun dipped down be¬ 
hind the edge of the fringing pines on 
the lawn, and it was nearing time for 




88 Little Men and Women Stories 


with her face close to the window so 
that two tears, rolling slowly down her 
cheeks, would not show. 

“You know, Jimmy-Boy,” she said 
at last, “we just have to tell her that 
we made molasses pop corn balls with¬ 
out permission.” 

Mother to come home, Sister stood 

“Then,” said Jimmy-Boy, standing 
up very straight, “I will tell Mother, 
because I am a boy. The boy should 
do the hard things.” 

So when Mother came home, all 
smiles because Aunt Edith was better, 
two sober children met her. Mother 




The Cat Who Talked 


89 


went right upstairs to leave her hat 
and coat, and then she went over the 
house, as she always did after being 
away, to see if the clocks were all tick¬ 
ing and the rooms all warm and the 
windows all down. Then, all smiles, 
Mother came into the living room and 
she said, “Dearest Dears, where is 
Tabby?” 

“We don’t know, Mother,” said Sis¬ 
ter sadly, “but we want to tell you—” 

“No, I am going to tell,” broke in 
Jimmy-Boy bravely, wanting to take 
the whole blame. 

“That we are very sorry—” went on 
Sister. 




90 Little Men and Women Stories 


Mother began to laugh so merrily 
that the children laughed too, al¬ 
though there did not seem to be any¬ 
thing amusing. Mother held out her 
arms to them and Sister and Jimmy- 
Boy both ran to her. She always 
seemed to understand things without 
being told. 

“Dearest Dears, I know all about it,” 
she said, “and it is all right since you 
tried to tell me, and Jimmy-Boy is a 
gentleman to want to take the blame.” 

“How did you know, Mother?” 
Sister asked. 

“Tabby told me,” Mother said. 




The Cat Who Talked 


91 



She is under a sofa 


“She is under a sofa trying to wash 
molasses pop corn off her white paws. 
When you dropped it Tabby stepped 
on it and it stuck very tightly! ” 





92 Little Men and Women Stories 


THE MAGIC BIRD 


“How I do wish that it were a real 
bird, a bird that could fly,” Rose-Marie 
sighed when mother brought her the 
wicker cage from the toy shop in 
which a toy bird sat and swung on his 
gilt perch. Rose-Marie had been shut 
in the house for more weeks than she 
could count, and now, although her 
back was growing stronger every day, 
the doctor said that she could not go 
down in the street yet awhile. 




The Magic Bird 


93 


So Rose-Marie sat in the window 
and watched the street almost all day 
long. It was a city street, not a very 
happy highway. That was why 
mother had bought the make-believe 
bird with such bright feathers. Why, 
he was a magic bird! If Rose-Marie 
wound up a spring in his tail he would 
sing! Only think of that! But after 
she had made him sing a few times and 
swing a few more times, Rose-Marie 
did not pay much attention to the bird. 
She just looked sadly down into the 
street, wishing she were well again. 

Gray rain, and the little bootblack 
standing at one corner, and the old 




94 Little Men and Women Stories 



So Rose-Marie sat in the window 
































The Magic Bird 


95 


apple woman at the other corner, and 
the quarreling little sparrows fighting 
on the curbing—that was the street. 
Rose-Marie looked at it through the 
sad veil of the rain and wished that 
something nice and unusual would 
happen. The little bootblack made the 
boots he was polishing shine, although 
the rain dripped from his cap. 

All at once he looked up at Rose- 
Marie’s window and his frowning face 
broke into a wide grin. Suddenly, the 
bootblack began to whistle in the rain, 
such a merry tune that people passing 
stopped to listen to him and smile. 
What made a hard working little boot- 




96 Little Men and Women Stories 


black whistle, Rose-Marie wondered. 

The old apple woman was not sell¬ 
ing very many apples on account of 
the rain. People hurried by without 
stopping at her stall, and the rain came 
through the canvas and wet her plaid 
shawl. Because she had nothing to 
do, the old woman looked up at Rose- 
Marie’s window. All at once she 
smiled so cheerfully that Rose-Marie 
smiled back. Then the apple woman 
began to hum a gay little tune. Rose- 
Marie could hear her, because the 
window was open at the top. What¬ 
ever could have made the apple 
woman sing in the rain, Rose-Marie 





£rfOrie 


All at once she smiled so cheerfully 

97 





























































































98 Little Men and Women Stories 


wondered. It almost made Rose-Marie 
feel happy and she wound up the 
musical bird in his wicker cage so that 
he might sing too. 

How the little tramp sparrows 
scolded there on the curbing! A little 
grain had fallen from a wagon in the 
road and they were trying to see how 
much they could take away from one 
another. They pecked at each other 
with their sharp bills and their dingy 
coats were rumpled and ragged. 

But suddenly one sparrow looked 
up at Rose-Marie in the window. He 
cocked his head as if he were listening 
to something that he liked, but had not 




The Magic Bird 


99 


heard in a long time. Then the spar¬ 
row flew to a bare branch of a tree 
where he could look right in the win¬ 
dow and he began to sing. He was 
joined by other sparrows who sang 
with him. It was not a very sweet 
song, only the loud chirping of city 
birds trying to make themselves heard 
above the traffic, but it sounded like 
spring. Rose-Marie clapped her 
hands and laughed. The mechanical 
bird sang too until it seemed as if he 
would fall off his gold perch. 

“They have seen my bird. They are 
happy to hear him sing,” Rose-Marie 
cried. “His bright blue feathers and 




100 Little Men and Women Stories 


his sweet voice make the street gay. 
They wouldn’t have felt that way if he 
were a real bird shut up here in a cage. 
I am glad he is not a live bird! ” 
Mother smiled at Rose-Marie, whose 
cheeks were pink now with happi¬ 
ness. “Yes,” mother said, “but the 
smiling face of a patient little girl and 
the singing of her heart that makes 
her happy are a help. A magic bird 
in a cage, and another magic song in 
a little girl’s heart—these are making 
a gray, rainy street bright.” 




The Picture Angel 


101 


THE PICTURE ANGEL 


Although the Picture Angel never 
moved and never showed the children 
that she was watching them, still she 
knew about the other pictures in the 
house. Ever since she had come to 
that house, and had been hung on the 
wall over the mantel piece, the Angel 
had watched over the family. 

There were many other pictures 
there in the living room and the chil¬ 
dren seemed to care for them very 




102 Little Men and Women Stories 


much. At least they decorated the 
other pictures from time to time, and 
the Picture Angel tried not to feel lone¬ 
some. It almost seemed as if they 
hardly saw her, so bright and shining 
and pointing with one slender arm to¬ 
ward the blue spring sky. 

There was the picture of the chil¬ 
dren’s great, great grandfather, who 
had been a soldier. When his birthday 
came, the children brought out a wide 
flag, starry and silken, which they 
placed just beneath the picture of this 
soldier, and they made a wreath of 
laurel from the woods to place on top 
of the picture frame. 




The Picture Angel 


103 













104 Little Men and Women Stories 


And there was the picture of the 
Baby asleep in his watchful mother’s 
arms. At Christmas time the children 
did wonderful things for that Baby. 
They twined evergreen all about the 
frame and hung a bunch of holly at 
one side. Then they set up a small 
green tree in the center of the living 
room and covered it with candles. 
When the birthday of that Baby, 
Christmas Eve, came, the room was 
darkened and only the lighted can¬ 
dles burned, making a light that would 
please Him without hurting His eyes. 

This was thoughtful of the children, 
but each time that they decorated the 




The Picture Angel 


105 


living room the Picture Angel hoped 
that they were going to see her. Flags, 
and laurel, and greens, and lighted 
candles, and once there was a bowl of 
blue violets, because it was the moth¬ 
er’s birthday! And each gift was for 
someone else beside the Angel. So 
presently she gave up expecting any 
attention and just kept herself bright 
and shining with her straight, slim arm 
pointing toward the blue sky. 

And after awhile the sky outside 
suddenly became as blue as a picture 
sky and the grass was green and the 
flowers that had been sleeping in the 
dark ground all winter awoke and put 




106 Little Men and Women Stories 


on their beautiful colored garments. 

“Easter! ” said the children. 
“Easter Day has come! ” 

The Picture Angel looked down 
from her place on the wall when she 
heard the children’s voices, and what 
a surprise was there for her! The 
children had come with her own 
flower, white lilies, to decorate her. 
They had found out that this was her 
birthday. Even the youngest child 
was there with his bunny and another 
stalk of tall white lilies. 

She was no longer forgotten. 
Really, had she been forgotten at all? 
Covered with Easter flowers the Angel 




The Picture Angel 


107 


thought how much better they were 
for her birthday than any other dec¬ 
oration could have been, bright, shin¬ 
ing Easter lilies, that had slept so long 
in the dark ground and yet found the 
way to the sun in time for Easter Day. 







DOLL LAND 
STORIES 


By ELOI5E BYINGTON 
Pictures by 
ULDENE 5HRIVER 



‘X JU5T RIGHT BOOK” 
Published by 

Albert Whitman company 

CHICAGO ILLINOIS 


AN UNUSUAL BOOK OF STORIES EACH WITH A GOOD 
MORAL, TOLD IN RHYMING PROSE 








]-[APPY n manikivt 

Manners lowN 

Jhe Derry Book of Good Danners 


Jext By 

LAURA ROLTNTREX SMITH 

author of Jo !!y Polly, Jiddjy Winks Books, e fa- 

pictures :6y 
MILDRXD LTON 



"A JUST RIGHT BOOK" 
PUBLISHED BY 

ALBERT WHITMAN COMPANY 

CHICAGO 

1923 










TUt tltRRY BOOK Of 1 THRIFT'"'-, 

BY \ \ 

LauraUountree Smith/ 


AUTHOR " OP THE: CHARM/TX/Ii^^ 
“T-E LIVErLY TV/ltTS. 7 HAPPY MANNlKlM 
/ The Tiddly Winks Books.etc. \ 

\ )' 



Chicago 

1924 
































Forty ParliesPlays andGames 


Laura Rountree Smith 



Pictures by 

Helen Frances Lyon 

PUBLISHERS 

tJUST RIGHT BOOKS 
ALBERT WHITMAN COMPANY 

CHICAGO 





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AUTHOR OF ALU THE. YEAR PLAyGfAMB5 
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